


Something Borrowed

by noveltea



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms
Genre: Community: fandom_stocking, Drabble, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-01-04
Updated: 2011-01-04
Packaged: 2017-10-14 10:19:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/148213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noveltea/pseuds/noveltea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Doctor ferries River in the TARDIS.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Something Borrowed

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2010 fandom_stocking fest, for masteralida

The TARDIS makes a noise that sounds like a computer coughing and then stubbornly shuts down.

In the middle of space. Sometime between the past and the present.

The Doctor frowns. “Really? That’s how you’re going to behave?” To the untrained eye, anyone would think that he’s staring his disappointment right into the heart of the living machine.

“I told you that pushing that button would cause you nothing but trouble.”

The voice belonging to the words was attached to a not-unattractive woman currently smirking down at him from the top of the staircase. If he didn’t know any better he could have sworn that was a bottle of vintage wine from a long-extinct race open in her hand.

His disappointment turned into simple annoyance, a look he had no qualms about shooting in River Song’s direction. “Thank you for your insightful comment, River. However, I don’t think it has anything to do with the button.”

She doesn’t look so convinced; trouble is, neither is he. Not that he’d ever admit it.

Not in a million years.

“It’s not the first time you’ve made this mistake,” she advises. It’s a comment she should probably have kept to herself; revealing parts of his future – her past – were something of an issue between them.

“Well, then clearly I still haven’t learnt from all of my mistakes,” he mutters under his breath and ducks down to look underneath the console.

He’d known that allowing River inside the TARDIS on a prolonged journey would be asking for trouble.

Pity he was never good at avoiding it when it reared its head.

“Are you all right down there?”

Such innocence in her voice; such an innocent and mocking tone.

“Yes, yes. Perfectly fine.” His response is automatic by now.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

He hears footsteps walking down the staircase and mutters curses in Gallifreyan.

“I could help, you know.”

He stands up so quickly that he nearly misjudges his distance and knocks his head against the console. “River, it’s fine. We’re fine. The TARDIS is fine. Just a small hiccup. We’ll be on our way soon.”

The smirk hasn’t left her face. “I was only offering,” she points out.

He makes a shooing gesture and a mental note to pick up Amy and Rory as soon as he drops of River, if only to regain some semblance of human, not-quite-normalcy for a short period of time.

He runs a hand across the console and sighs, and checks that River is out of earshot, before leaning forward.

“I’m sorry, dear,” he whispers.

The TARDIS hums quietly back into life.


End file.
